


Lady Grey and Mr. Spiffy

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-11
Updated: 2014-10-11
Packaged: 2018-02-20 17:24:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2436848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Woo, what's in this tea? Did you poison me, Aaron Hotchner?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lady Grey and Mr. Spiffy

“Are you alright?”

 

“Hmm?” Emily opened her eyes and looked at Hotch. She turned off her iPod, softly playing Simon and Garfunkel in her ears. Her Unit Chief sat across from her and presented her with a glass of Lady Grey tea. That got a slightly painful smile.

 

“You don’t look alright.”

 

“I suppose I don’t, but I am. I have no idea how I am going to explain this to my mother though.”

 

“Hide out until it heals,” Hotch replied. “that’s what I would do.”

 

“Really? Are our mothers kindred spirits?”

 

“It’s possible.”

 

“Don’t be a tease, Hotch.” Emily sipped her tea. “If you have horrid mother stories then you have to share. You’ve seen mine up close and personal…gimme some reciprocity.”

 

“I doubt there is enough time for proper reciprocity.”

 

“A six hour plane ride isn’t enough? Ouch, give me as much as I can take.”

 

“You should be resting.” Hotch said. “It wasn’t my intent to keep you from relaxing.”

 

The BAU was on their way back to Quantico from Corvallis, Oregon. They successfully profiled and captured a group of young and brazen bank robbers. Prentiss, in the take down, went toe to toe with the female Unsub. While Emily wasn’t as young as she used to be, Shannon Grassley wasn’t as tough and smart as she thought she was. Punches were thrown; so were kicks and jabs. Emily had a purple mark on the side of her eye and some other bruises on her face. It wasn’t too bad…it could have been worse. 

 

If Hotch didn't know better, and sometimes he swore he didn’t, he’d say Emily got a thrill out of kicking that kid’s ass. Not in a sick way of course, but in a human way. Taking down the bad guys, no matter how it was done, created a high. It was why Morgan loved tackling and kicking in doors. It was why Hotch went to the gun range all the time to raise his shot average. The mind fuck was adventurous enough…the physical aspects were an added bonus. This was, of course, when you didn’t want the job to go to hell altogether. Working in the BAU ran hot and cold.

 

“You're not being fair.” Emily crossed her arms and put on a pretty pout.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I want one ‘my mother drives me bananas’ story. I especially want it if your mother embarrassed you.”

 

Hotch smirked. He reached into his back pocket for his wallet. Opening it, he pulled a picture out and handed it to her. Emily gave it a cursory glance before handing it back.

 

“Jack is as adorable as they come but you're not getting off that easy, SSA Hotchner.”

 

“Look closer,” Hotch gently pushed her hand back toward her. “that’s not Jack.”

 

“Oh my God.”

 

Emily paid more attention to the photo. It was yellowed with age, which should have been the first indication. The clothing was definitely late sixties attire. Still, it was a darkly handsome man with dimples and a picture perfect blonde holding a dark haired child. Anyone glancing at it would have mistaken it for the Hotchner family that no longer was. In all actuality, that’s exactly what it was. Emily’s fingers traced over the frozen smiles wondering what they were thinking as the camera flashed. She remembered how unhappy she was in all those family pictures even though her picture perfect smile never wavered.

 

“Your parents are quite attractive. You look just like your father.”

 

“I've heard that more times than I care to recall.”

 

“It’s the truth.” She said. “So, I'm not going to get a story?”

 

“A picture is worth a thousand words.” Hotch replied.

 

“You're a cheater.” She said.

 

“I can live with that.”

 

“Clearly.” His answer made Emily smile.

 

“I don’t have any embarrassing mother stories.”

 

“I can't believe that; everyone does.”

 

“Not me.” Hotch shook his head. “My parents spent most of their time pretending to be perfect.”

 

“Ah yes…that I can understand. Actually my mother didn’t start embarrassing me until I was grown up. Once, in St. Louis…”

 

“What happened in St. Louis?”

 

“Nevermind. Woo, what's in this tea? Did you poison me, Aaron Hotchner?”

 

“Nothing of the sort.” He didn’t know why but the question made him grin.

 

“Mmm, I like your grin.”

 

“Ditto.”

 

“Tell me something about your mother.” Emily said.

 

“Why?”

 

“Because I asked nicely. I want to know her better.”

 

“She loves to dance.” Hotch said. “She loves Motown and Van Morrison. She kicks off her shoes and just dances. I often wonder where she goes when she is dancing because she looks so free. I've never seen her as euphoric as when she is dancing.”

 

“Did she dance with you?”

 

“I can't dance.”

 

“It wouldn’t matter when you're this adorable.” Emily pointed to the picture she still held.

 

“We danced all the time.” Hotch replied. “It’s actually one of my earliest memories.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

“For what?” he leaned forward some, hand resting on the table top but not quite touching hers.

 

“Opening up when I asked.”

 

“Tell me something. Why do you need to explain what happened in Oregon to your mother?”

 

“Kit Ambrose’s 65th birthday.” Emily rolled her eyes.

 

“Who is Kit Ambrose?” Hotch asked.

 

“Katherine Ann Ambrose is my mother’s best friend and my godmother. Her party is Saturday evening at the Jefferson Hotel. If I'm in town I have to be there. Kit’s been good to me…I won't complain too much about that. Plus, as quiet as it’s kept, this crowd likes to drink. Open bars make these things survivable.”

 

“I'm sure they do, and it’s not kept that quiet.”

 

Emily grinned. The open bar would be her favorite part of this event. She loved her Aunt Kit but most of her time would be spent trying to keep the drunken men off her, and some of the women as well. All this crowd cared about was power, booze, and sex. Emily hardly wanted to think about how close she had come to being in too deep with them. She never wanted to be…sometimes you just lost your way. Her mother always wanted to pull her back in. Emily was tired of swimming with sharks; Unsubs were enough for her.

 

“I'm sure makeup will cover the eye.” Hotch said. “They have the really natural kind these days; it covers everything. Not like in the past when…”

 

“What?” Emily asked.

 

“Nothing.” He shook his head. “By the way, I have quite a spiffy tuxedo in my closet.”

 

“That doesn’t surprise me at all.” she finished off her lukewarm tea. “You're the spiffy type, Aaron Hotchner.”

 

“I could brush it off for Kit Ambrose’s 65th birthday party.”

 

“My mother would attempt to eviscerate you and have you as an appetizer.”

 

“You know that I can handle Ambassador Prentiss. If I can't, it won't be too bad for her…you tell me all the time how good I taste.”

 

Emily laughed, quickly covering her mouth. Then she winced. It would be a few days before her jaw stopped feeling so tender.

 

“I want to know more about you.” She said.

 

“I'm not an easy man to get to know.”

 

“That’s not going to stop me from falling in love with you.” Emily replied. “I guess I should say it won't stop me from loving you.”

 

“I know, and I appreciate that. Your many mazes and brick walls haven’t stopped me either. We’ll take one step at a time.” Hotch said.

 

“Aunt Kit’s party is a step?”

 

“Mmm hmm.” He nodded. “I’ll be there to let all the drunken dignitaries know that Emily Prentiss is a taken woman.”

 

“You'll be there so you won't give yourself headaches wondering what happened while you weren't there.”

 

“Why the hell should you pretend to be single and lonely when you're in love and happy? I think we’re more rational than that.”

 

“Love and rationality rarely go hand and hand, Hotch.”

 

“I want to be there because I already know how beautiful you're going to be. I want to watch you shine, sparkle, and take control of a room with a glance and a smile. I want to hear you say my name when you introduce me around. I want to see you sip champagne, smoke a clove, and make your mother beam with pride. I want that because I love you.”

 

Emily could hardly speak. She quickly pressed her hand over his, smiling as Hotch flexed his fingers through hers. There were so many things she wanted to say but all of it seemed insignificant. She went with the first thing that came to her mind.

 

“You broke Rule #1.” Her hand went back into her lap.

 

“Extreme circumstances…I'm allowed.” Hotch replied.

 

“Extreme, huh?”

 

“Yes.” He nodded.

 

“I love you too, Aaron.” Emily whispered.

 

His smile was real and she knew it because of the dimples. Emily was in love with those dimples; it was hard not to be. Sometimes she would wake at night and watch him sleep. Maybe it was silly but it always made her feel good. Hotch made her feel good. Knowing that she did the same for him was a high unlike any other.

 

“So we go together on Saturday?” he asked.

 

“I would never want to deny the world a chance to see you in your spiffy tuxedo.” Emily said. “If we’re in town, we’ll be there.”

 

“We’ll be in town. I'm the BAU Unit Chief; I have a little control over some things. We need to get things done in Quantico. I think we’ll finish up the week there, have a weekend to ourselves, and then start all over again.”

 

Hotch definitely believed starting all over again had its benefits.

 

***

                                                                                                                                  

  
 


End file.
